Never Too Far Away
by ChalakChalak
Summary: Short oneshot based on request. Has nothing to do with my trilogy. Ashitaka and San, of course.


I got a nice request to make a happy one shot though I don't know if this is exactly happy. Eh, felt good writing about them again though! This has nothing to do with trilogy, just in case. Just a one shot.

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The water was dark and sinister looking, reflecting the moonlight harshly, as if rejecting its light. It rippled dangerously against rocks, fish, and any other intruder it may encounter. Still, the water itself was not cold anymore. It provided a sense of warmth that was produced after you get used to the first biting pricks of throwing yourself into icy water. Though the night was dark, there were two creatures in the water, barely visible in between all the opaqueness of the darkness. One was almost fully submerged, only the whiteness of her eyes could be seen and the strange green hair that looked black at the moment. She looked at the man in front of her with the eyes of a predator, full of passion and ardor. The man was around her age, his own eyes looking back at hers but he had a soft smile that graced his already handsome face.

"You're going to get an ear infection," the man said, his voice gentle but it sounded odd against the sound of rushing water, as if interfering with something that should be interfered with.

The woman made no move to re-emerge but merely shrugged nonchalantly. Suddenly, she submerged completely, leaving the man by himself. He didn't seem to be surprised for he merely rolled his eyes to the sky.

"Never listens," he mumbled and looked down in the water. He spotted her and took a deep breath, knowing very well what she was about to do next. Without much a reaction, he was pulled down into the water with her.

There, she gave him a mischievous smile, sticking her tongue out at him. He kept on smiling and closed the space between them, giving her small kisses all over her neck or as much as his air supply would provide. Knowing very well she was ticklish, he continued, despite her kicks and punches. She was quite powerful and though they hurt a little, he kept on mercilessly. Finally, he held her from the waist and swam up to the surface. They broke through the water, gasping and laughing, and continued to play. The water splashed around them with their games, the sound of their laughter and screams filled the once silent air.

They had no real responsibilities that day nor did they want to speak of the ones they did have. They took any opportunity presented to them where they could have fun and be nothing more than whom they were. Not to be Ashitaka, the one who had saved Iron Town and was working so hard to repair it once more and neither was Princess Mononoke trying to be the caretaker of the failing forest. They had no names that night and they pushed away their worries for the moment.

The night continued, getting darker and darker by the moment. Still, the two lovers had enough light in each other to keep them in sight; not that they were ever that far away from each other. There was always a touch, a kiss, a caress in between them. Maybe some words of comfort and passion were exchanged but they were never too far away. They would entangle themselves with each other, limb against limb, finger intertwined with fingers, and lips against lips.

No, never too far away from each other.

The night turned quiet once more for lips were no longer open to let out screams of delight but a few moans of bliss would escape once in a while. They got out of the water, naked and glazed with the water's sparkles. The two blankets at the bank were still there, with no trace of the food they had brought for the small picnic they had late in the afternoon. There, life continued between the two lovers, in an ancient ritual of love and fervor. The night witnessed love in the simplest act as the darkness retracted from the world.

Slowly but surely, the night gave itself to the day, performing its own dance of love and relenting to the rite of merging. The rays of the sun started shining through the treetops and bathed everything in light. At once, the forest came alive, full of sounds and noise, busy as it would always be. Birds started chirping rowdily, insects buzzed around them raucously, and the animals woke up from their lazy slumber.

But there were two beings that chose to sleep that day, wrapped in the blankets as well as each other. A man and a woman, nothing more than that, lay in between the river and the forest, caught as always between two different entities. Yet, they lay peacefully together, unknowing of what the future would bring for them, but they didn't worry.

They were never too far away from each other.


End file.
